Motorola Razr: why we love this flipping legend

By Luke HopewellApril 3, 2020

In a world where smartphones often look similar, Motorola is back to change the game once again, and show us all how a phone can be more than just a featureless slate. Say “hello, Moto” to the new Motorola Razr.

‎‎‎‎‏‏‎ ‎

It’s a style-icon reinvented

The original Motorola Razr V3 from 2005 redefined what phones could look like. No longer were they grey, unmemorable bricks. Motorola showed us our phones could be just as stylish as our other accessories, with funky colours, brushed metal finishes and applications we’d never seen before.

Now in a sea of black rectangles, Motorola is back to blow our minds all over again with a vertical folding smartphone. It’s the perfect intersection between a flip phone of old and smartphone of tomorrow.

And just like the original, it’s back with more nifty features to change how you use your phone.

It has nifty features inside and out

When it’s open, the Razr is an awesome entertainment, productivity and connectivity tool. But when it’s closed, it’s still just as handy. While fully-closed, the Razr’s 2.7-inch external Quick View screen allows you to complete your tasks without even flipping it open.

The Quick View display allows you to read notifications, play music and even take selfies.

The camera works even more intelligently when you open the device, with smart composition, portrait mode and cinemagraph working hard to make your photo and video capture easy.

And it’s loaded with smart engineering throughout, even packing in an app that lets you simulate the old Razr V3 from 2005! Hello, Moto indeed.

It’s an ultra-convenient companion

Weighing in at 205g and folding up to an incredibly pocketable 94mm, the Razr is the perfect phone to carry when you don’t want to carry one at all.

It seamlessly slides into your pocket, with barely a bulge to speak of. And thanks to the Smart View screen, it doesn’t need to be unfurled every time you get a notification.

Availability

We’re proud to be the exclusive carrier for the new Motorola Razr in Australia.

The Motorola Razr is available from today with all of our new simplified mobile plans. You can add on the device for $112.45 per month on a 24-month contract. Min cost from $3,898 over 24 months on the $50 plan and may change if month to month plan price changes.

Check out our hands on video to see the Motorola Razr backflip right into your heart.

Luke Hopewell is an editor, tech expert and Senior Specialist Writer at Telstra Exchange. Luke joined Telstra in 2019 where he has had the privilege to help bring stories to life in a unique and human way. He was previously the head of editorial at Twitter Australia and the editor of cult tech site Gizmodo. For over a decade, Luke’s passion for technology has always driven him to seek out the latest gadgets and game-changers, and help others to understand how it all works. In another life he was a cyber security specialist where he sought to educate people about how to stay safe online. When he's not writing, he's getting outdoors and patting all the nice dogs he meets.

Oppo Reno 5G smashes speed test at Australian launch

By Luke HopewellMay 31, 2019

Last night in Sydney, Oppo launched its awesome new Reno 5G smartphone at an event in our Customer Innovation Centre (CIC). The event, attended by technology media and analysts, gave Aussies the first look at the awesome new Reno and its capabilities, with a 5G speed test that reached over 1900 Mbps down.

The Reno 5G checks all the boxes for a next-generation flagship, centred around incredible camera and processing power, along with exceptional display and gaming credentials. The Oppo Reno 5G is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 processor underneath a huge 6.6-inch OLED display. Oppo has prioritised the display, meaning that the screen-to-body ratio is up to an incredible 93.1 per cent.

The camera also represents a great leap forward for
smartphones, with a tri-lens rear camera setup that features a 48MP primary
lens; a 13MP periscope telephoto lens and an 8MP wide-angle lens, all pointed
at a Sony image sensor for incredible day, night and zoom photography, and 4K
60fps video recording. Around the front, a pop-up camera concealed within the
handset produces wide-angle 18MP selfies, allowing the display to stay
“notchless”.

The Oppo also prioritises gaming performance in its new flagship. It’s packing what Oppo is calling ‘Hyper Boost 2.0’, which speeds up display, system and app performance for faster results in-game. To top it all off, sound performance is crystal clear thanks to Dolby Atmos support. All of that is kept ticking for longer with a 4065mAh battery.

Oppo demonstrated the power of its new smartphone last night
at Telstra’s Sydney CIC with a speed test that which achieved a download speed
of 1942 Mbps on our 5G network, drawing gasps from the assembled crowd. And it
wasn’t a one-off, either. We speed tested the Reno over and over and continue
to achieve speeds over 1900 Mbps down, while being wowed by the screen and
sleek design of the new device. (It is worth noting that the speed was achieved
under test conditions and actual speeds in the real world will be slower.)

Oppo’s Managing Director Michael Tran said at last night’s event that the Reno 5G is the result of four years of R&D into 5G and its potential. Oppo’s 5G research shows that the new networking technology represents significant opportunity for consumer and business users, with the potential for greater collaboration and interactivity. Oppo’s research also showed that 5G had potential application for cutting-edge tech like driverless cars thanks to low latency and fast speeds. It’s continuing its research into 5G post-Reno launch.

Oppo announced that the Reno will be available for pre-order
from today, and for a limited time come with a free pair of Bose QuietComfort
35 headphones (normally valued at $499.95). The Reno 5G goes on sale from 11
June, and at launch comes with a pair of Bose SoundSport Free Wireless
Earphones (normally valued at $299.95), also for a limited time.

We’ll bring you a closer look at the Reno 5G in the coming
weeks! Stay tuned for more.

5G is only available in selected areas. Telstra is progressively rolling out 5G. To find out more about Telstra 5G, check here or ask in store.

Luke Hopewell is an editor, tech expert and Senior Specialist Writer at Telstra Exchange. Luke joined Telstra in 2019 where he has had the privilege to help bring stories to life in a unique and human way. He was previously the head of editorial at Twitter Australia and the editor of cult tech site Gizmodo. For over a decade, Luke’s passion for technology has always driven him to seek out the latest gadgets and game-changers, and help others to understand how it all works. In another life he was a cyber security specialist where he sought to educate people about how to stay safe online. When he's not writing, he's getting outdoors and patting all the nice dogs he meets.

It’s new phone season, the busiest time of the year

By Campbell SimpsonSeptember 21, 2018

As Australians have become more digitally savvy and have embraced online shopping, many of our customers have swapped in-store queues for pre-ordering online.

Around this time, we deliver tens of thousands of new phones into customers’ waiting hands. This year, we’re so busy that we’ve recruited some special ambassadors to ensure all our customers get their new devices as soon as possible – and, for some, with a little extra surprise and delight.

It all starts at our distribution facility, where the team works around the clock to receive deliveries and pass them on to our network of 350 stores – as well as to the thousands of customers that have pre-ordered devices. More than 200 people at our distribution facility walk on average 15,000 steps daily to do their jobs, and we use a freight network with over 750 flights a day.

In fact, more than 70 per cent of day one sales of new phones will be customers ordering in advance. That’s thousands of devices reaching their new owners in quick succession, and it takes a gargantuan effort to pull off. Our customers also love the entertainment inclusions on our smartphone plans – including the AFL and NRL data-free with their Live Pass – so we thought we’d combine the two.

We’ve selected six famous ambassadors from the worlds of sports, entertainment and music – representing all the content that comes with our mobile plans – to make special surprise deliveries to a few of our customers in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane.

AFL players Luke Parker from the Sydney Swans, Seb Ross from St Kilda and Charlie Cameron from the Brisbane Lions are joining NRL player Daly Cherry-Evans from the Manly Warringah Sea Eagles, Foxtel’s The Real Housewives of Melbourne Lydia Schiavello and singer-songwriter Thelma Plum – the face of our new TV campaign – to make some very special deliveries.

In a change from their usual scenery, our guest ambassadors are heading out in Telstra delivery trucks and vans to meet our customers and make an already special day a little bit more special.

Campbell is the External Editorial Lead at Telstra, and is responsible for Telstra Exchange's editorial strategy and publishing. In his role, Campbell finds interesting stories from within our business and shares them in new and innovative ways. He came to Telstra after working as a technology journalist for over a decade at websites like Gizmodo, CNET and PC World, and has a longtime love of tech and gadgets. When he's not writing, Campbell spends his downtime outdoors whenever possible, hiking, camping or mountain biking around New South Wales.

Hands on with the Samsung Galaxy Note9: our first impressions

The screen

The first thing you notice is the screen – and it’s a big one. Samsung has an excellent reputation when it comes to high quality smartphone displays, and this Infinity Display is the biggest that Samsung has ever put into a smartphone. It’s a Super AMOLED panel and has a Quad HD+ resolution; that’s better twice the pixels ofthan the Full HD TV in your living room.

The cameras

On the back of the Galaxy Note9, you’ll see its 12 megapixel super speed dual camera module. This is the same camera module as the one Samsung launched (to great acclaim) in the Samsung Galaxy S9 Plus earlier this year.

It has dual aperture for low light photography, and you can actually see the lens dilate like a human eye as it adjusts to the light. It also has intelligent scene recognition and flaw detection – it can spot when a subject has blinked, for example.

That aperture is variable from f/1.5 to f/2.4 for the technically minded amongst you, and it can shoot 960 frames per second super slow motion video.

Flip the phone back to the front and you can see its 8 megapixel front-facing camera – for selfies and the like.

Power

You can’t see it, but the Galaxy Note9 packs a whopping 4000 mAh battery – that’s larger than in any other smartphone that Telstra currently sells. The Galaxy Note9 is also configured for wireless charging – although the wireless charger itself is sold separately.

IP68 water resistance

With another key feature that is not immediately apparent but incredibly handy, the Samsung Galaxy Note9 is rated IP68 for water and dust resistance. This means that it’s certified to be fresh water resistant to a depth of 1.5 metres for up to 30 minutes. It’s still not advisable to take it swimming, because that certification is not for salt or chlorinated water.

The S Pen

The S Pen stylus is the calling card of the Samsung Note series, and this year it has been given a major overhaul. The new S Pen now boasts powerful Bluetooth Low Energy technology, letting you press a button to take control of your camera, scroll presentations and more – without touching your phone. It should be noted that the S Pen remote function is subject to Bluetooth connection quality, which is subject to environment and circumstances. The function may also vary by app.

Also worth noting is that the stylus does an excellent job for drawing, taking notes, and sending Live Messages – it’s as intuitive and natural as pen and paper, thanks to the fine tip and true-to-life pressure sensitivity of the Galaxy Note9’s screen and S Pen.

Under the hood

The Note 9 includes Samsung’s latest chipset for superfast processing. There are two memory variants – the entry level has 128GB of internal storage, and the step-up model holds a massive 512Gb. User accessible memory will be approximately 108GB for the 128GB memory variant and 492GB for the 512GB version.

Campbell is the External Editorial Lead at Telstra, and is responsible for Telstra Exchange's editorial strategy and publishing. In his role, Campbell finds interesting stories from within our business and shares them in new and innovative ways. He came to Telstra after working as a technology journalist for over a decade at websites like Gizmodo, CNET and PC World, and has a longtime love of tech and gadgets. When he's not writing, Campbell spends his downtime outdoors whenever possible, hiking, camping or mountain biking around New South Wales.

Sometimes there’s a genuine need to call someone and prevent your phone number from being displayed. Perhaps you’ve received a call from a number you don’t recognise, and you want to call back to check who it is without revealing your number. You can do this on both your home phone and mobile phone.

There’s two methods of hiding your number from being displayed – either on a call by call basis, or permanently.

Block your number on a call by call basis

From a home phone, dial 1831, then the number you’re calling.

From a mobile phone, dial #31#, then the number you’re calling.
‏‏‎‎‏‏‏‎ ‎

Block your number permanently

For mobile phones, most phones include a “show my caller ID” settings in the settings, which you can turn off. The location of this setting varies from mobile to mobile, but is usually located in Main Menu, then Tools or Settings, then Phone. For more information, please check your mobile phone manual.

Call us on 13 22 00 to discuss options for blocking your number on a permanent basis.
‏‏‎‎‏‏‏‎ ‎